F1
Esteban Ocon apologizes for clash with Franco Colapinto: “It was my fault”
© DPPI
Esteban Ocon He left Shanghai empty-handed, in the shadow of an impressive Ollie Bearman. His teammate dominated the proceedings with a fifth-place finish, while the Norman driver finished the Grand Prix crestfallen, failing to reach fourteenth place after being penalized 10 seconds for a collision with Franco Colapinto.
Under pressure from his teammate's results, who scored all 17 points for the team Haas So far, Ocon has been taking a gamble to snatch the point for tenth place. But this over-commitment resulted in contact with theAlpine of the Argentinian, Ocon colliding with Colapinto as he exited the pits, in the second corner. Regarding the incident with Franco, it was my fault, I apologized. he admits in an interview with Canal+. Anyway, it was all or nothing, we had to try. I'm glad though that we didn't both end up out and that he still scored some points. "A regrettable incident, especially since the drivers were second and third after the safety car was deployed for a track stop." Lance stroll.
The clash between Esteban Ocon and Franco Colapinto at the Argentinian's exit 😱💥#ChineseGP #F1 pic.twitter.com/uGF9vTqNbn
— CANAL+ F1® (@CanalplusF1) March 15, 2026
Luck seems to have deserted Esteban Ocon, trapped by a series of unfortunate events. The incident isn't really the problem. (with Colapinto. Editor's note). It's mainly the safety car that comes out at the worst possible time. This has happened in two races now, and we don't benefit from its intervention; we lose ground to everyone else. We were on top form at the start of the race. We were in the top 10, fighting to finish fifth or sixth, but then we lost ground. he laments. It's like that. We started with hard tires, so we couldn't stop earlier (when the safety car was deployed). We would have been forced to stop twice. It would have been a disaster.. » Esteban Ocon thus sees the gap widen with his teammate in the championship, at the end of a frustrating Chinese weekend.
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vincent moyet
16/03/2026 at 04:46 a.m.
It doesn't look good: dominated by a rookie driver last year, in a negative spiral trying to force luck, and now French hopes rest on Hadjar.
Herve 06
15/03/2026 at 02:38 a.m.
Ocon as usual… …except for the apologies, which are rather rare from him.
Yves-Henri RANDIER
15/03/2026 at 01:15 a.m.
Is the pressure already a bit too much for the Ebroicien, who was largely dominated by a rather incisive and decisive Bearman in his overtaking maneuvers?